Riveting machines



P 1962 ROSENTHAL 3,053,123

RIVETING MACHINES Filed Sept. 16, 1959 7 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. LEON ROSENTHAL mnunln ATTORNEY Sept. 11, 1962 ROSENTHAL 3,053,123

RIVETING MACHINES Filed Sept. 16, 1959 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3.

LEON ROSENTHAL 78 QZZZLzj. M

7 6 ATTORNEY Sept- 11, 1 2 L. ROSENTHAL 3,053,123

RIVETING MACHINES FIG 4 LEON ROSENTHAL sarwjlw ATTORNEY Sept. 11, 1962 L. ROSENTHAL 3,053,123

RIVETING MACHINES Filed Sept. 16, 1959 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 ATTORNEY Sept. 11, 1962 ROSENTHAL RIVETING MACHINES 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Sept. 16, 1959 75 INVENTOR LEON ROSENTHAL ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,053,123 RIVETENG MACHINES Leon Rosenthal, 7403 Kalton Court, Baltimore, Md. Filed Sept. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 840,442 3 Claims. (Cl. 7849) This invention relates to riveting machines and it is more particularly concerned with riveting machines designed for use on portable objects and utilizing cold rivets.

The general object of this invention is the provision of a cold riveting machine which is capable of riveting materials of tubular shape to various pieces, including pieces that provide only limited access for the anvil and/ or press head.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a riveting machine of the type mentioned in which the anvil includes a special floating pilot for exploring the rivet holes in the pieces to be riveted, and entering and holding the holes in alignment until the rivet is disposed therein, a special feature of the pilot being the provision of positive means, other than springs, for yieldably urging it in a protracted posit-ion.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a riveting machine having means associated with the anvil to resist insipient deformation of the stem part between the rivet heads.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a riveting machine having in combination a mouse member for insertion in tubular pieces and an anvil and pilot associated with the mouse, means for wedging the mouse in the tubular member at selected points and means for inserting and securing the rivet blanks in position.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a riveting machine which overcomes the problems incident to the use of rivets of irregular lengths.

These objects and still other and further objects, advantages and features of the invention will be apparent from the following description considered together with the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the head section of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view of the head section partly broken away with overlying dotted lines of certain parts to show different positions thereof in operation.

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the embodiment on a scale larger than FIG. 1, with parts broken away.

FIG. 5 is a section along the line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a section along the line 66 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a section along the line 77 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 8 is a section along the line 8-8 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 7 with the rivet blank carrier in a protracted position.

FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view of the mouse member with its internal wedge in released position and the pilot in retracted position.

FIG. 11 is a view similar to FIG. 10 with the internal wedge in clamping position and the pilot in protracted position.

FIG. 12 is a section along the line 1212 of FIG. 10.

FIG. 13 is a section along the line 13-13 of FIG. 10.

FIG. 14 is a section along the line 14-14 of FIG. 8.

FIG. 15 is a top plan view of a fragmentary portion of the mouse member and its horizontal swivel support.

FIG. 16 is a side elevational view of typical members, among others, that can be riveted together by the use of the invention.

FIG. 17 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 1717 of FIG. 16.

FIG. 18 is a front elevational view of a portion of the embodiment, partly in section, illustrating an initial step in the riveting of a tubular member to another member, said members being shown in section.

FIGS. 19, 20, 21 and 22 are views similar to that of FIG. 18 showing subsequent successive steps in the riveting operation.

FIG. 23 is a side elevational view of a head section, partly broken away, showing a modification of the invention for use in riveting together non-tubular pieces.

FIG. 24 is a vertical sectional view along the line 2.4- 24 of FIG. 23 on a larger scale.

FIG. 25 is a sectional view along the line 25-25 of FIG. 24.

FIGS. 26, 27 and 28 are front elevational views, partly in section, of the parts shown in FIG. 18, illustrating successive positions of certain parts in the riveting operation.

Referring with more particularity to the drawing, the embodiment illustrated comprises a pedestal 31 which supports a head section generally designated by the numeral 32, at a height convenient to the operator.

The head section 32 comprises a frame formed by a pair of laterally spaced C-plates 33 and 34 secured by bolts 35 to a base block 36. The upper jaws 37 and 38 of the Ct-plates carry between them a vertical reciprocating ram 39 in a suitable guideway for-med by a front plate 4t), and rabetted side blocks 41 and 42 bolted to the C-plates. The side block 41 carries a horizontally slidable arm 43, the inner end of which carries a roller 44 in contact with a recessed portion 44A on the side of the ram. The arm 43 is urged inwardly by a leaf spring 46 on the block 41. (See FIG. 14.)

The ram 39 is pin-connected to the lower link 47 of a toggle linkage, the upper link 48 being pivoted to the head section on a trunnion 49 carried by the blocks 41 and 42. The inner ends of links 47 and 48 are pivotally connected to each other and to the forward end of a pusher bar 50, the rear end of the bar being pivoted to the short downwardly extending arm 51 of a bell crank 52 that is disposed between the plates 33 and 34 and pivoted thereto by a trunnion 53. The other arm 54 of the bell crank extends outwardly to the rear and is pivoted to the outer end of a vertical ram 55 projecting upwardly from a conventional air motor cylinder 56. The lower end of the cylinder 56 has a mounting lobe 57 that is pivotally connected to the rearward end of a block 58 which is secured to the base block 36 by a bolt 59. The cylinder 56 is provided with the conventional air tubes 60 and 61 leading to a suitable pneumatic system (not shown), including valve means actuated by a foot lever 62.

The lower jaws 63 and 64 of the C-plates are secured to a bottom cleat 65 by bolts 66 and 67. Between the forward ends of the jaws 63 and 64 there is mounted for slidable vertical movement a block 68. The lower end of the block 68 rests against the top of pins 69 and 70 mounted in apertures 71 and 72 of the cleat '65, said pins being longer than the thickness of the cleat. The lower ends of the pins 69 and 7t abut a plate which overlies a resilient rubber block 74. Another abutment plate 75 is disposed against the bottom of the rubber block 74. A bolt 76 passes through the center of the plates 73, 75 and the block 74, while the upper end is threadedly engaged with the cleat 65 to firmly anchor it there to. The lower end of the bolt carries a nut 77 which is threadedly engaged therewith, and a flanged spacer 78 is disposed between the nut 77 and the bottom of the plate A horizontal rail 79 is disposed behind the upper end of the block 68 and it is secured thereto by means of bolts 80, 81 passing through lateral flanges 82 and 83, respectively, of the rail.

The top 84 of the rail 79 has a dovetail cross section (see FIG. 6) which is slidably engaged with a corresponding dovetail groove 85 of a slide block or cross head 86. This cross, head moves under the action of a linkage system consisting of a link 87 and a bell crank 88. The forward end of the link 87 is pivoted to the slide member and the rearward end is pivoted to an arm 89 of the bell crank 88. The other arm 90 of the bell crank is pivoted to the outer end of a ram 91 projecting upwardly from a conventional air motor cylinder 92. The bottom of the cylinder 92 has a mounting lobe 93 which is pivoted to the plates 33 and 34 by a trunnion 94. The cylinder 92 is provided with the usual air tubes 95 and 96 for connection to a conventional pneumatic system (not shown) including valve means actuated by the foot lever 62.

To the front side of the block 68 there is secured an L-shaped member 97 by means of countersunk mounting bolts 98 and 99 through the vertical part 100. The horizontal part or shelf 101 projects forwardly and the forwardmost edge is flanged upwardly to provide a lip 102. Between the lip 102 and the vertical part 100, there is removably disposed a cradle 103. This cradle may be changed for different cross-sectional shapes of tubular articles to be riveted, and it is held secure to the member 97 by one or more bolts 105. v The cradle 103 is adopted to support the members to be riveted together, such as tubular members 106 to which scroll members 107 are to be attached. To rivet such members together, one of the tubular members 106 is disposed on a mouse 108. In accordance With this invention, remote control means are provided for wedging the mouse inside the tubular member 106. The mouse also carries an anvil 109 for upsetting the tail end of the rivet under a force supplied through the ram 39.

The mouse 108 is connected to one end of an elongated tubu-lar member 110 which is adjustably clamped to a vertical swivel member 111 by means of a clamping bar 112 and bolts 113. The member 111 is carried by a horizontal swivel pin 113A projecting from the vertical arm of an L-shaped bracket 114. The horizontal foot 115 of bracket 114 is swiveled by means of a pin or bolt 116 to a base member 117 which is, in turn, clamped to the outer end of horizontal bar 118 by means of bolts 119.

The other end of the bar 118 is secured to the member 97 by bolts 120 and 121, substantially as shown. The base member 117 is set on the bar 118 so that the anvil 109 of the mouse will be aligned with a forwardly offset press head 122 secured to the ram 39. The press head 122 has a downwardly extending part 123, the bottom of which is concave to receive the head of a rivet blank and force it downwardly against the anvil.

The mouse 108 comprises an elongated block 124 supporting the anvil 109. The bottom of the mouse is undercut to provide a cavity 125 with a sloping surface on the bottom of the top wall 125 for engaging a complementary movable wedge 127, so that when the wedge is translated longitudinally in the cavity, its lower edge is displaced downwardly and hence effects a clamping action against a tubular member placed over the mouse of slightly larger size.

The wedge 127, at is smaller end is flanged to provide an upwardly extending lip 128 in an adjacent cavity 129, the end walls 130 and 131 of the latter cavity providing abutments for the lip 128 to limit movement of the wedge. The wedge 127 is translated by means of a rod 132 secured to it at one end. The other end of the rod extends through a forwardly enlarged channel 133 of the mouse and then through the elongated tubular member 110. The enlargement of the channel 133 permits transverse movement of the forward end of the rod 132 to the extent needed for the corresponding movement of the wedge. 1 a

The forward end of the wedge 127 is supported by a guide pin 134 threaded-1y engaged with the wedge and slidably engaging an aperture 135 in the mouse block in a direction parallel to the line of travel of the wedge relative to the block.

At the opposite, outer end of the tubular member 110, a cross bar 136 is secured and it carries a bracket 137 at one end to pivotally support one end of a lever 138 as a fulcrum. The end of rod 132 projects beyond the bar 136 and is pin-connected to the lever 138 by a pin 139. Also pin-connected to the lever is the outer end of the ram 140 of a conventional air motor cylinder 141 secured to and carried by the end of the bar 136 opposite the bracket 137. An air hose 142 leads from the air motor to a pneumatic pressure system (not shown in detail), including a conventional control valve (not shown).

By these means, air pressure applied to the air motor cylinder 14 1 causes the ram 140 to move outwardly and actuate the lever 138 which, in turn, causes the rod 132 to move and carry the Wedge 127 with it to the clamping position. When the air pressure is released a conventional internal spring (not shown) in the air motor cylinder, or other suitable means, returns the lever 138 and parts movable therewith to their initial positions.

The anvil 109 comprises a vertical tubular member 143 set in aperture 144 of the mouse block 124. The aperture 144 has a restricted portion at the top providing a downwardly facing annular shoulder 145 which abuts a correspondingly upwardly facing shoulder 146 formed by an enlarged portion 147 of the member 143. The memher 143 is also provided with a circumferential groove 148 at its periphery to receive and hold a sealing band or O-ring 149 of rubber, nylon, or other suitable material.

The anvil 109 has an upper wall 150, the top surface of which has a shape obverse to a rivet head to be formed at the tail end of a rivet blank under pressure of the ram 39. The end wall 150 also has a central aperture 151 through which a pilot 152 projects. The lower end of the pilot has an enlarged portion 153 to provide an upwardly facing shoulder which in its uppermost position (FIG. 11) abuts the lower side of the wall 150. This enlarged portion 153 comprises a piston and it is also provided with a circumferential groove 154 to hold a sealing band or O-ring 155 against the inner surface 157 of the anvil.

The anvil 109 and piston 153 are removably retained in position by means of a backing block or plug 158 threaded into an aperture 159 therebelow of the block 124. In its lowermost position, the piston 153 rests against the plug 158, as shown in FIG. 13.

The pilot 152 is moved upwardly by the force of air pressure communicated to piston 153 through an air duct 160 in the mouse which terminates on the inside as a groove 161 along the top of the plug 158 adjacent the bottom of the piston 153. The other end of the duct 160 is connected to a pipe 162 which extends through the tubular member 110 and is connected to a source of air pressure, (not shown) including conventional valves (not shown) for selectively communicating the air pressure source with the piston 153.

Mounted on the cross head 36 is a block 163 by means of mounting bolts 164 and 165. Projecting forwardly from either side of the block are a pair of resiliently flexible arms 166 and 167 of spring steel or other suitable.

material which are secured to the block sides by pairs of bolts 168 and 169, respectively. The forward ends of these arms are resiliently biased against arms 170 and 171 secured to and projecting from the block 163 along the inner sides of the arms 166 and 167.

The forward ends of the arms 166 and 167 are secured to members 172 and 173, each of which comprises a forward section 174 and 175 having an aperture segment 176 and 177, respectively, adjacent the inner sides so that when the inner sides are in abutting engagement,

as-shown in FIG. 9, the aperture segments form together an annulus, tapering downwardly to a central opening 177A of a size to accommodate the tail of the rivet blank.

7 The members 172 and 173 have rearwardly extending portions 178 and 179 which are secured to the arms 166 and 167 by bolts 180 and 181, respectively.

The cross head 86 reciprocates between defined limits such that at the forward end of its stroke the annulus formed by the members 174 and 175 is directly below the press head 122 and, in the rearward end of its stroke, the members 174 and 175 straddle the forward end 182 of a spreader 183 at a rivet blank discharge channel 18-4 formed in a member 185 attached to the head section. Rivet blanks are delivered to the channel 184 through a chute 186 from a conventional rivet blank feeder 187 mounted on top of the head section, substantially as shown, said feeder having the conventional hopper 188 and a rotatable feed wheel 189, the latter being actuated by a connecting rod 190, one end of which is eccentrically pivoted to the wheel 189 and the other end being pivoted to the bell crank arm 54, substantially as shown.

The spreader 183 is integral with the member 185 and it is secured therewith to the head section by a bolt 191. It extends downwardly between the arms 170 and 171 when the cross head is in its forwardmost position, as shown in FIG. 9, while in its rearwardmost position, as shown in FIG. 7, it engages the inner surface of the portions 178 and 179 to push them apart slightly, thereby, when a rivet blank is dropped therein, the head and tail portions thereof are both firmly gripped and held by the sections 174 and 175 so as to keep the rivet blank in correct vertical position during the subsequent riveting steps.

In operation, the tubular member 106 to be riveted is first placed over the mouse, as shown in FIG. 18. Compressed air from the source of supply (not shown) is then passed through pipe 162 and duct 160 to the bottom of the piston 158, thereby urging the pilot 152 upwardly. The tubular member 106 is then shifted on the mouse block 124 until the pilot 152 is located beneath a rivet hole in the member 106 to be used. The second piece 107 is then positioned on the first piece so that the pilot protrudes also through its corresponding rivet hole, as shown in FIG. 19, thereby establishing a correct alignment of the two rivet holes. The air motor is then actuated to move the wedge 127 to clamping position (see FIG. 20).

The mouse is then moved about the pivot points of the universal bracket 114 to place the tubular member 106 on the cradle 103, as shown in FIG. 20, whereupon the air motor 92 is actuated to move the cross head 86 forwardly, whereby a rivet blank held between the forward sections 174 and 175 is moved forward to place the blank between the anvil 109' and the press head 122. Then, the valve controlling the air motor 56 is opened, thereby actuating the toggle linkage 47, 48 and forcing the ram 39 down carrying with it the press head 122. As the press head moves down on the rivet blank, the tail end of the blank pushes against the pilot 152 and forces it to its downward position, whereupon continued pressure by the press head upsets the tail end of the rivet blank resulting in the formation of the second head to complete the rivet. As the rivet blank is moving down, the camming action of its head against the surfaces of the annulus spreads the members 174 and 175 apart against the resilient action of the arms 166 and 167. The cross head 86 is then retracted to its initial position. The ram 39 is then retracted to its initial position, the mouse wedge 127 unclamped and the machine is ready for its next cycle of operation.

By means of the floating arrangement of the vertical slide block 68, a number of advantages are obtained. In the first place, it is known that ordinary rivet blanks are 6 dimensionally irregular. Blanks that are ostensibly of the same size, do not, in fact have precisely the same dimensions. For example, the lengths may vary due to the imperfections of manufacture. This creates certain problems. The larger rivet blanks may cause breakage between otherwise unyieldable members of the riveting machine; while short rivet blanks may result in the formation of defective rivets, sometimes to the extent of requiring their removal and replacement. By virtue of this floating member, the height of the anvil 109 can be adjusted to achieve the formation of proper rivets, regardless of dimensional irregularities in the rivet blanks and also to prevent damage to the machine in the case of rivet blanks of excess length.

By adjusting the nut 77, upward force is applied to the block 68 by the pins 69 and 70 through the rubber block 74. Hence any downward force on the block 68 is cushioned by the rubber block '74.

Referring with more particularity to FIGS. 23 to 28, the modifications illustrated therein relate to the anvil unit. It is intended for use on non-tubular pieces that require relatively long rivets and wherein deformation between the heads of the final rivet is a problem. In lieu of the mouse 108 the cradle 103 with its supporting members, there is provided an anvil unit 191 comprising a stationary block 192 bolted to the forward end of the block 68 by bolts 193 and having a forwardly extending projection 19'4. Overlying the stationary block 192 is a floating plate 195 which is secured to the top of a pair of stanchions 196 and 197, and which has a forwardly projecting nose piece 198 above the projection 194. These stanchions are slidably mounted in vertical apertures 199 and 199A, respectively, of the stationary block 192 and extend therebelow to abut a horizontal cross bar 200.

The cross bar 200 is provided with a central vertical aperture 201 in which there is slidably disposed a vertical tubular member 202. The upper end 203 of member 202 is threaded to engage the internal threads of an aperture 205 in the bottom of the block 192. The lower end 206 of the tubular member 202 is also threaded externally to receive a nut 207 and a coil spring 208 is compressibly mounted about the member 202 between the nut 207 and the cross bar 200. An air hose 209 is also connected to the bottom of the member 202 by means of a threaded coupling 210 on the threaded part 206.

The block 192 is provided with a combination rivet head former and pilot 211, similar to the one described above in the mouse 108 and comprising a hollow cylindrical barrel 212 set in a well 213 of the block extension 194. It is air sealed in the well by means of a recessed O-ring 214. The upper end 215 of the barrel 212 is adopted to project upwardly in one position through an aperture 216 of the nosepiece 198 and is slidable in relation thereto.

The barrel 212 is concave at the top to form a head in the tail of a rivet blank pressed thereagainst. The hollow portion 217 of the barrel contains the pilot 218 mounted on an air piston 219 in communication with an air duct 220 in the block 192 that communicates with the hollow portion of the tubular member 202 and hence with the air hose 209.

The underside of the floating plate 195 including nosepiece 198 and the adjacent top side of the stationary block 192, including extension 194 have complementary shapes so that in the lowermost position of the plate it will conform to the contour of the top of the block 192.

When two non-tubular pieces of material, such as the concave pieces 221 and 222, are to be riveted together, they are placed on the nosepiece 198, as shown in FIG. 26. Tension in the spring 208 is adjusted, as may be necessary by the nut 207 to support the weight of the pieces so that each riveting operation may be commenced with the plate 195 in its uppermost position. Then, the rivet holes are aligned by means of the pilot 218, a rivet blank 223 inserted and the press head 122 brought down.

With the nose piece 198 in its elevated position, the upper 'piece 221 is brought adjacent the head of the rivet .blank 223 before pressure sufiicient to upset the opposite end of the blank is brought to bear on its head. As pressure on the rivet blank is increased by the press head, the tail of the rivet blank is upset toform the second head of the final rivet adjacent the bottom of the lower piece '222. This pressure also moves the floating plate 195 downwardly against the resilient action of the spring 208, whereupon the formation of the final rivet is completed, as shown in FIG. 28., However, during all these steps in the riveting operation, that part of the rivet blank adjacent the pieces to be riveted together is in its final relative position. Consequently, deformation of this adjacent part is resisted by the walls of the rivet holes in the pieces. However, should any insipient deformation occur therein, it will not affect the subsequent operation or the quality of, the finished rivet, because this part of the rivet is in its correct final position, while the remaining part of the blank is to be upset anyway to form the second head of the rivet.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A riveting machine comprising a head having a lower jaw and an upper jaw rigidly formed and connected together against deflection under the forces incident to the riveting operations of themachine, said jaws being vertically spaced from each other so as to receive therebetween members to be riveted together, avertical ram mounted for axial reciprocation on the upper jaw, a rivet press head secured to the ram for movement therewith, said press head having a forwardly offset nose provided with a downwardly facing depression conforming to the head of rivets to. be used, a rivet anvil said lower jaw having means directly below the offset member for supporting the rivet anvil and the members to be riveted, a rivet blank transfer mechanism having a terminal unit slidably mounted on the lower jaw for horizontal reciprocation between a forward discharge position above the anvil and a receiving position away from the anvil, means for reciprocating said unit, means for reciprocating said ram when the unit is in its forward position, a mouse for insertion into a tubular member to be riveted, said anvil being attached to and carried by the mouse, an elongated arm connected to and supporting the mouse, a

bracket connected to the head, means pivotally connecting said arm to the bracket for movement of the anvil into and out of a position above the lower jaw in alignment with the hollow of the off-set member, and remote control means for releasibly wedging the mouse at selected positions within the tubular member. I

2. A riveting machine as defined by claim 1, a vertical pilot at the center of the anvil for disposition in aligned rivet holes of pieces of material to be riveted together, said pin being mounted for axial movement between an upper protracted position and a lower retracted position relative to the anvil, and pneumatic means for yieldably urging the pin to its protracted position.

3. In a riveting machine having a head section, a vertically reciprocable ram carried by the section, a press head carried by the ram, a cradle carried by the section below the press head, a mouse for engaging the interior of 'a tubular member to be riveted, said mouse including a moveable wedge for clamping it in selected positions with such a tubular member, an anvil carried by the mouse, and means shiftably supporting the mouse on the section in different positions, one position being on the cradle, said cradle being adapted to engage the mouse and confine it to a position thereon so that the anvil is directly below the press head, a pneumatically operable pilot carried by the anvil, and means for communicating a source of pneumatic pressure through said mouse to said pilot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,483,720 Dlesk Feb. 12, 1924 1,509,183 Freeze Sept. 23, 1924 1,802,719 Junkers Apr. 28, 1931 1,855,235 Havener Apr. 26, 1932 2,069,042. Marchant Ian. 26, 1937 2,101,924 Turnquist Dec. 14, 1937 2,230,518 Weinhold Feb. 4, 1941 2,827,808 Charlat Mar. 25, 1958 2,965,247 Hepner Dec. 20, 1960 FOREIGN PATENTS 33,898 Norway Jan. 16, 1922 610,405 France Sept. 6, 1926 

